Archive for the ‘Kingdom of God’ Category

Just like God….
Yesterday morning, i was given this thought….
“We can spend our whole lives chasing our dreams, or we can get filled with God and begin to find out what we were created to “Be” and to “Do” while we are living here for a few days on this planet.”

Then i get on the bus….
I see a guy coming down the aisle to the back. He appears to be uncertain or lost. Then he does a little spin around before he sits down.
I say to him, “hey! How’s it going?”
His reply? “Good! Just having a “Dreamy life”. Bing!

Then i shared with him what i had received, “We can spend our whole lives chasing our dreams….”
So we spent the next 25 mins. in conversation about dreams, God/Jesus, the need for a spiritual birth etc. He also mentioned how he used to have a “Gideon bible” and enjoyed reading it. Bing!
I had one in my back pocket, which i graciously gave him.

As i have said many times, “God is all about people”. He will daily lead you to people, or bring them right to you. And if, we are not off in our own little world, and have the blinders removed, we will see the realm (kingdom) of God come here on earth.

God who is Spirit, resides in the spiritual realm (kingdom). He is also Holy. What does “Holy” mean? It means “sacred, whole, pure, or clean”. How can we unholy humans have a relationship with a God who is Holy? Do we need to go through some kind of holy religion with its traditions and rituals to become holy and accepted?

In Jesus’ day, there was a religious man who was a teacher of his religion. After he acknowledged that Jesus was a teacher sent from God, Jesus turned to him and said,“unless one is born again, he cannot see (know, perceive, understand) the kingdom (realm) of God”. Then the man said, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter back into his mothers womb and be born?”. The man tried to figure out what Jesus was talking about in his natural mind.

Man has always tried to understand God, and the ways of God, through his natural mind. He forgets that God is Spirit and his ways are spiritual. The natural man cannot receive the things of the Spirit. In fact, they are usually ridiculous to him. He cannot know the things of the Spirit because they must be spiritually discerned.
After Jesus talked about how to understand the things of the Spirit, he addressed how to enter the realm (kingdom) of God. He said, “unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God”.

What does it mean to be “born of water and the Spirit?”. First off, to be “born of water” has to do with an internal washing of the heart which is the center or core of our being. In the heart resides all our offences towards God and others (our sins). A holy God which is Spirit, will not come into a heart that has not been washed clean of all its offences. How then can this “washing” take place?

God in his love has provided a way for us to be washed (made clean) and thus accepted with him. By believing (putting your trust in) Jesus and what he did on the cross by the sacrifice of himself for our offences, we are made clean. This is an act of faith. Faith is something that you cannot see but yet you believe it. After the heart is washed clean, then the Holy Spirit which is God, comes in, and one is “born of the Spirit”.

After Jesus told the religious teacher that he must be born of the Spirit, he reminded the man about Moses and how in his day he “lifted up” a pole with a bronze snake on it and everyone who was bitten when they looked on the snake, lived. And Jesus said that just as that was so, even so I must be lifted up. And whoever “believes” in Me will not die (spiritually), but receive eternal life. When Jesus spoke of being lifted up, he was looking ahead to the cross where he knew he was going to be sacrificed for the sins of all humanity. All those who believe personally by faith that Jesus died on the cross for their sins receive forgiveness, which results in having their heart washed and cleaned from sin and filled with God who is the Spirit.

Also, by faith believing that Jesus not only died for our sins, but was buried and rose again to conquer death for us, one receives life.
In closing, Jesus said “You must be born again”. He didn’t say, I think it is a good idea or a good philosophy. He said “You must” if you want to “see” and “enter” the spiritual realm where God is. So what’s keeping you? What’s holding you back? Unbelief? Fear? Pride? Self? Give it all to Him. You will never be sorry. Then you will know what you were created for, and what you are to do. Revelation can only come by the Spirit of God within you. “Ask and you shall receive”. Keep your heart open.

Born again is both being “born of water” and “born of the Spirit” (see Jn. 3:3-8)

Being “born of water” is the cleansing process from within that takes place at the heart. By believing on Jesus and receiving his atoning sacrifice of blood for the remission of our sins and the inherited sin (“the sin of the world” which came from Adam), then one is ready for the outward act of water baptism which pictures what has taken place internally. A death to the old sinful man has taken place when one goes under the water. Upon coming out of the water, the symbol of the “washing of regeneration” that took place is evident. One is made clean internally and ready for the Spirit of God.

The “born of the Spirit” baptism can take place at the same time or it can come before or after the water baptism. Also, quite often it comes through the “laying on of hands”. The main thing is that it indeed takes place. However, the “born of the Spirit” never precedes the being “born of water”. The house (so to speak) needs to be clean before the Spirit comes in. How can one know that they have been born of the Spirit? Their spirit will bear witness with God’s Spirit. There will be an internal witness. Also, there will be evidence of “power”. Power to overcome sin and temptation, and also power to become “witnesses”.

Jesus was very specific in teaching the “New Birth” to understand and enter the Kingdom. In fact, He said, “you must”. But I wonder how often it is overlooked, or complicated. Do you think Satan would try to stop this process at any cost? How about getting believers so caught up in everything else but the necessity of being born again? Or, how about adding stuff it? Taking away the simplicity of?

He’s done a very good job, to say the least. I say, lets return (if we were ever there in the first place) to understanding the new birth process. Understanding it enough to be able to share it with our neighbors (any one close to us).

In John 3:5, Jesus said, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom the kingdom of God”.

Born of water and born of the Spirit (3:8) make up the “born again” experience. It takes both to complete it. Do you know what this means? Have you spent time with God alone and asked him to reveal it to you through His word and Spirit? Or, are you going on only what you have been taught about it, or how you were raised? Maybe what your church teaches on it? Do you run to the internet and check the best one that you agree with and call it good? What about pulling down the book off your bookshelf that says, “How to be born again?”

Without over complicating the understanding of being born of water and Spirit (believe me, it can and has been), could you explain it to an unbeliever? Do you know the basics of this teaching? If so, who revealed it to you? Did the “Teacher” (the Holy Spirit) have anything to do with it?

It’s simple, but it can be easily lost in the midst of religious trappings. We must be continually reminded that first off, God is Spirit. He is not some tangible God that will be confined to a box built by man. The minute you try to put Him in a box, he smiles, and goes right through the walls of the confinement that has been built. Why? Because He is Spirit, and you cannot confine a spirit to an enclosure. The same is true of spirits sent from Satan. A spirit is a spirit. You can’t see it. You can’t even try to make it what you think it should be. It has already been formed by its creator, and cannot change unless its creator causes it to change.

The human intellect has and can spend, its whole time on earth below trying to figure out God who is Spirit. In the natural mind, he makes out God to be something that his mind can create. Thus, he has created a God that suits his understanding, and one that he can relate with. Then, all he has to do to make it “spiritual” is attach some religious traditions, religious teachings, religious teachers and the like. Woo-la. Stamp a name on it, and in some cases market it, and they are off and running in a world that is full to overflowing with gods, religions, teachings, and seminars.

Again, we are to be reminded by the very words of Christ, which are spirit and life, “God is Spirit,” (Jn.4:24a).

Now, being that God is Spirit, what do you think that it might take for one to begin to commune with, relate with, have a relationship with a God who is Spirit? How about, a birth of the Spirit of God within you, a spiritual birth from God. A birth where His Spirit comes to be birthed inside you. This is where one enters the spiritual realm (kingdom) of God.

The best way to understand this is to take a look again at the story of Nicodemus. He was a religious ruler of the Jews. So, he was very well versed and educated in his religion, in fact he was a “ruler of the Jews”. So this is no little guy, as far as status goes.

Jesus knew all about this guy. He knew every detail of his life. Was Jesus intimidated by him? You decide.

After Nicodemus credits Jesus with the fact that he knows that Jesus is a teacher from God, and that he does miracles, signs and wonders, and that no one could do what he has done unless God was with him, Jesus reply’s, “unless one is born again (born from above, spiritually) he cannot “SEE” the kingdom of God.” (Jn.3:3). The word “see” here is very important to understand. It means, “to know”, “be aware of”, “know”, “knowledge”, “perceive”, “understand”.

So, first off we see that Jesus knew that Nicodemus must be told first how to “know, perceive or understand” the kingdom of God. Do you think that because of all his studying, much learning etc. that Jesus had to deal with this first?

How many people today are trying to know, perceive or understand the spiritual realm (spiritual kingdom) of God? Have you ran across a few lately? It’s nothing new. They were trying to figure it out well before Christ, and today it’s still the same, well after He has gone.

And as if we needed more from Nicodemus to show that he could not figure it out with all his religious teaching and upbringing, he says to Jesus after he said that he needed to be “born again”, “how can that be? Can a man enter a second time into his mother’s womb? Talk about trying to figure it out in the natural mind! I can’t help but think that Jesus either rolled his eyes, smiled or maybe even laughed.

After Nicodemus’ questions, then Jesus went straight to “how to enter the kingdom of God”. Now, through all this we must see that Jesus is trying to relate a “spiritual kingdom” to a man who has no concept of spiritual things. Why? Because if he did, he would have not mentioned the natural birth when Jesus was talking spiritual birth.

And, I love how Jesus basically said to him, “don’t try to figure it out” (In verse 8, where he talks about the wind). This should be a good reminder to us all when we come across those who can’t figure out the spiritual things that we may be talking about. First things must come first, they must be “born of the Spirit”. All the best approaches, best tactics and best teachings on evangelism will not produce one convert unless they have been born again.

So, in closing, I would like to remind us that it is a good idea to re-acquaint ourselves with the basic understanding of the Spiritual side. God is Spirit. It takes a Spiritual birth to understand the things of the Spirit. And, one must be born of the Spirit to perceive and to enter the kingdom of God.

If we are to be effective in God’s kingdom in all that we do, we must be in the Spirit, and doing the things of the Spirit, and sharing/teaching/preaching the things of the Spirit.

Imagine with me for a moment…. You’re riding your motorcycle way out in the country. You are lost, and trying to find a certain lake. You are driving in an area that is nothing but apple, cherry and pear orchards. The country roads are narrow and windy, and every farm-house is about a quarter of a mile apart. It’s a beautiful sunny day, but you are getting frustrated because you can’t find the road that goes to the lake that you came up here to visit.

You have been running from God for years now. You no longer believe that there is a God. All the stuff that has gone bad in your life, you blame God for a lot of it. You are bitter and angry at God.

Stay with me now……

You come upon the crest of the road and it heads down hill now. You haven’t seen any sight of a human for miles now, but way up ahead, you see a guy in a bright yellow shirt, standing off to the side of the road. Your not sure what he is doing just standing there by himself way out in the middle of nowhere, but it’s worth a try to ask him

As you get close to him, you shut off the motorcycle, and coast up to him and say, “excuse me, but do you know where the road that leads to “lost lake” is? The man smiles and says, “I don’t know, I’m not from around here.” You say, “oh sorry, maybe I must have passed it back there some where.” The man says, “yeah, I don’t know”.

You proceed to start your motorcycle up, but before you do, the man says, “wait, I have something for you”. He pulls a postcard out of his pocket, and you notice “John 3:16” on the top of it. The man says, “what about Jesus?” You start you motorcycle up and say, “I don’t believe in God”. The man says, “but God loves you!”

You make a quick u-turn and head off in the other direction.

NOW, BACK TO REALITY.

What do you think the man on the motorcycle would be thinking as he drove further down the road? Here he was out in the middle of no where, and a man in a yellow shirt appears out of no where, just standing off the side of the road? And this guy mentions Jesus of all things to him? What about John 3:16? Did the man hear that verse a few times in his life? Did he use to quote it? We will never know this side of eternity, what that man thought of the rest of that day. I can only imagine because of what I know about God. Small it may be, but I know that He is always pursuing people with His love and giving them many opportunities. And His love has to do with His Son Jesus (Jn 3:16). God also makes no mistakes in everything he does.

Do you think it was just a coincidence that he was searching for a lake that had its name “lost?”

In the right sence, may this man not be at rest until he makes his peace with God through Christ. Eternity is too long to be without Christ.

I WAS THE GUY IN THE YELLOW SHIRT. Do you think it was just “happen chance” that this happened?

All I knew, was that I was on a prayer walk after parking my car at a remote park that was back down the road. Why was I standing there on the side of the road? Why didn’t I just keep walking, or cross the street?

I must admit, that it was strange to watch the guy slow down way up the road, then shut his motorcycle off and coast like a magnet right up to me. Fortunately, I knew that it was a “divine appointment”. Sometimes I miss it.

This is what I enjoy in life. Watching God at work. Investing in the Kingdom of God for eternity. Trying to always be aware of what is going on with people around me. Looking forward with anticipation. Nothing else in life comes close to experiencing God at work. Nothing

When you turn to Jesus there is a whole lot of dying that must take place. It is a life long process of dying. It is a continual process of dying to ourselves. Dying to our desires. Dying to our ways. Dying to our dreams. Dying to our fantasies. Dying to our wants. Dying to our needs. Dying, dying, and more dying.

And the reason for all this dying? So Christ in us may surface to the forefront, so that the world would see Jesus, and we would be about The Kingdom of God.

There is however a real danger that can happen along the way of dying. What is that? Looking back. Looking back at all the stuff you have given up for God and His kingdom. Then it becomes regret. Satan plants seeds just like he did in the garden. “Has God really said that?” “Did God really require that of you?” The doubts began to overcome all the advances that were made for the Kingdom. Soon, one is drawn back into the world, and with time, the things of God become a distant memory.

The deceiver has struck again!

I have not regretted one thing that I have given up for God. Oh, at times there was some sort of grieving that took place, but when it was all said and done, the blessings for out weighed the giving up. In order for one to fulfill the call of God on their lives, He will show you personally what must go. It could be very minimal at times, other times it could be things that are very big in our lives.

It could be our jobs. It could be our homes. It could our families. It could be our business. It could be our church. Whatever He shows us personally along the process of our lives, that is what we need to give up. We give it up so we can move along on the tracks of His plan and purpose for our lives. We must be reminded that God is all about eternity. He sees the beginning from the end. He has eternity in view all the time. Whatever can be given up for Him and His Kingdom so that it can advance for eternity, is worth it to Him. We are here so very little of time that it should be no shocker to us to give our all for Him and Kingdom work. That is if we are indeed sold out for Him. This is if He is Lord.

I will not list all the things that I personally have given up for Him, except to say, it has been worth it all. Life with Him is a continual life of forsaking all and dying to ourselves. It starts the moment one is “born again”. You and I are called to die the moment we are born. And the question must go out…… how are we doing with it?

This all comes from The giver of life, Jesus the Christ. Read the gospels, if you doubt what has been written here.

There are only two kingdoms. People are only in one or the other. There is God’s kingdom and Satan’s kingdom. And the battle is only over one thing. The human soul for eternity.

“Woe to the inhabitants of the earth and the sea! For the devil has come down to you, having great wrath,” Why? “because he knows that he has a short time.” (Rev.12:12b)

“And the dragon (the Devil/Satan) was enraged with the women, and he went to make war with the rest of her offspring, who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.” (12:17)

The spiritual battle for souls is intensifying. I see it more and more as the day approaches. Satan is very, very angry because he sees the end coming and wants to get all the souls he can for eternity. More and more people are being overcome with all his devises, such as drugs, alcohol, sex, and pornography etc. Satan has his “hooks” in people so he can lure them to wherever he wants them to go. His main objective is to lure them right into eternity, to see them together in a place prepared for himself and all his angels. (See Rev.20:10, 15 and 21:8)

We as believers, are the “offspring” that he (Satan), has come to make war with. Do you sence this war going on? I am not talking about the daily troubles, such as, problems at home, problems at work, relationship problems etc. These are common everyday difficulties that all face in one form or another. It doesn’t matter whether you are a believer or not. What I am talking about is the warfare that is going on if you are actively engaged in some form of “rescuing the perishing”. This is where the main battle is. Yes, there is other forms of warfare that we as believers face. But, the hot spot of the battle is and always has been on the front lines battling for eternal souls.

Satan is at war with you, if you are “keeping the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ”. For all those who want to put God in a denominational box, and say that He is talking about the “Ten Commandments” here, need to take a look at this word “commandments”. It means, “injunction” which is “to enjoin”. “the act or an instance of enjoining: order, admonition.” The word “enjoin” has to do with “yoke”. “to direct or impose by authoritative order or with urgent admonition.”

We are safe with saying that it is those who are “enjoining” themselves into God’s word, God’s order and admonition. Those who are taking upon themselves the “yoke” of Jesus. Taking on His “authority” and “admonition”.

Satan is also at war with you if you have the “testimony of Jesus”. This word “testimony” means that there is “evidence given”. Does your life bear evidence of Jesus? If not, you are not at war, and you need to be really concerned. If Satan is not at war with you personally, then you need to be very concerned as to where you are in your relationship with God and his kingdom. The word “testimony” also means, “record, report, witness”. What’s our record with Jesus? How about our report? Our witness?

It is not as though we go looking for this “war”. No, we don’t go looking for Satan, and he is not under every bush either. However, if we are active in God’s Kingdom, there will be evidence of spiritual battle in this war. It will usually be manifested through people. Just like God uses people, Satan also uses them. In Revelations 12:9, it says that “his angels were cast to the earth ” along with Satan. He has untold angels roaming the earth today. If you are active, you won’t have to be looking very far for them. They will find you.

So, a good indicator as to whether you are in this war or not, is to take inventory of your most recent days here on this earth, and see if Satan has raised his ugly head at you. Do you see the battle raging through people around you? Does Satan send one of his angels across your path occasionally? If so, Good! You’re in the war for souls. Yours and others, and it’s a good thing.

In closing, how do we “overcome” Satan? The answer is found in verse eleven. “by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death.” Three things here. The blood of Christ. Our spoken testimony. And by not loving our lives while here on earth, even if it costs us our lives. Good then, the word “testimony” also comes from the meaning of “martyr”

God bless you as you march forward and take your place in His Army on the battle field.

What was the reason why God chose to send John the Baptist before the coming of The Christ? Couldn’t He had sent Christ without him? Did John the Baptist have any real significance? Did it all have to do with “water baptism?”. Was John the “water baptizer”, and Christ the “Holy Spirit baptizer”. Is it that simple and that settles it, or does it?

In order to understand the real significance of the coming of John the Baptist, we must dive into the Prophets, Isaiah and Malachi. Also, it will do us good to pay attention to “the angel of the Lord”. After all, they are the ones that prophesied the coming of John, right? Do you think that they might have had some good insight as to why he was sent? In fact, they have spent some time in heaven with the Father, haven’t they? Or would you rather take Doctor so and so, or Professor so and so? Mere men.

Isaiah prophesied some 712 yrs. before the birth of The Christ. “The voice if him crying in the wilderness; “Prepare the way of the Lord; Make straight in the desert a highway for our God.” (Isa.40:3)

Malachi prophesied some 397 yrs. before Christ. “Behold, I send my messenger, and he will prepare the way before me.” (Mal.3:1)

It is obvious in these two prophesies, that John had a “message” to declare. A “voice crying in the wilderness”. And, “I send my messenger”. So, do you think that maybe his message would be important? Couldn’t God have sent Christ without one “crying a message” before Him?

The word “crieth” (crying) in Isaiah means to “call out to”, “preach”, “make proclamation”. It is the same meaning as the word “preach”. So, John was sent to preach a message, and his message had to do with “prepare the way of the Lord”. It is vital that we understand what this “prepare” is. John, commonly known as the “forerunner”, was sent to preach a message of “preparation” before the Lord comes. We will see that this preparation is and was, the whole meaning as to why John the Baptist was sent.

Let’s look at the word “Prepare”. In its Hebrew meaning, it has to do with “to turn”. This sounds familiar. Where have we heard this word before?

If we jump ahead to the New Testament and look into the coming of John the Baptist as recorded in the book of Luke, we see some striking similarities into the understanding of these two words, “prepare” (or prepared) and also, “turn“.

John’s father, Zacharias, was visited by an “angel of the Lord”. He told him about this “preparing”. The angel prophesied that “he will “turn” many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God.” The angel also said that, “He will also go before Him (Christ) in the spirit and power of Elijah, “to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children,” and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.” (Luke 1:16-17).

See, you got to love those angels. Sounds like they might have had an inside “tip” that gave them the information to be order to prophesy.

When the angel said, “he will turn the hearts of the fathers to the children”, he was referring to Malachi’s prophesy regarding sending Elijah before the coming of the “Great day of the Lord”. (Mal.4:5-6). This is the “spirit of Elijah” that the angel said that John would come in. In a sence, you could say that John the Baptist was coming in the spirit of “turning”. This will make more sence as we proceed.

Now, here is some awesome insight into these two words “turn” and “prepare” (or prepared).

The word “turn” in its Hebrew meaning, means “to turn back, to turn away, cause to return, make to return”. It is the same meaning as the word “Repent“. This is why I love to use the word “turn”.

The angel also said that he would “turn” many…. In this passage the word turn, means “convert, return, to revert, come, go again”. Wow! In our previous part 2, we saw that the “re” in regenerate, means “anew, once more, again”. Looks pretty close doesn’t it?

So, I like the idea of taking what the prophets had to say. And, I also really like what the angel of the Lord had to say. Many take exclusively, the teachings of this doctor of theology, or the other. They study all their teachings on the subject at hand. They pull down all their commentaries off the shelf, and try to arrive at one they agree with, or one that fits their own theology. Again, I say, let’s get back to the Holy Spirit and the Word.

In part 4, we will look more into John’s message, and as to why he came. Stay tuned

“Water is for the “internal washing” of the heart. The “blood” is for the “remission of sins”.

In part one, we looked into some of the “natural” properties of this “water purification” as contained in the Old Testament.

For cleansing and atonement, it takes “water and blood”. The sacrifice/offering was not considered “clean” unless it was “washed” with water. The washing proceeded the sacrifice/offering. Some analogues of this to be considered, could be the following,

Before water could be turned into blood, it had to be first water. Keeping in mind, that in the natural, blood is 82% water. In Exodus 4, the Lord speaking to Moses regarding the two signs says, “And it shall be, if they do not believe even these two signs, or listen to your voice, that you shall take water from the river and pour it on dry land. The water which you take from the river will become blood on the dry land.” (Ex.4:9)

It came to pass as the “first plague” as recorded in Exodus 7 :14-25, “Waters become blood”

Water and blood are closely used together. In Hebrews 9:19, the writer relates back to the “first covenant”. He is speaking primarily of “blood” in this chapter, but it’s not to nullify the “water”. Again, the animal sacrifices had to be first “washed”. “For when Moses had spoken every command (or precept) to all the people according to the law, he took the blood of calves and goats, with water, scarlet wool, and hyssop, and sprinkled both the book itself and all the people,”.

So, to try to understand the process of water in relationship to the spiritual birth, we need to go back to the “spiritual” understanding of this “water” birth. For now, let’s try to stay away from the literal “water baptism” meaning. That is the easy understanding, or the quick fix. As I have said in my previous posts that led up to this study, we live in a day where everything is “fast and quick”. If one can get “saved” right now, that’s good enough. All one has to do is “acknowledge Jesus”, right?

So water is used for cleansing/washing. Since we are trying to understand the spiritual meaning of being “born of water”, it is necessary to again be reminded that “born” is “regenerated”. The very meaning of the word “born” in the Greek is “to regenerate”, and the “re” means “anew, once more, again”. Generation means “nature”. How about a “Anew nature?”. Regeneration is a spiritual rebirth, a spiritual renovation into a new nature. So, coming to the understanding of the part “water” has to play into it, we arrive at the “washing of regeneration” (Titus 3:5). This is internal. This has to do with the heart, or the “core” of man. To say, “born of water” in a spiritual setting, is seeing it as an “internal washing” that must take place.

Now, to put ourselves in Nicodemus’ shoes, we must remember that he had read the book of the Prophet Ezekiel before, no doubt. He didn’t have the New Testament like us. It is always good to remind ourselves of this fact. They were taught, or were schooled in “Old Testament” terms.

Had he (Nicodemus), read about the “Renewal of Israel” from Ezekiel? Was he a “teacher of Israel?” Jesus said he was. (Jn.3:10). So what are we to do with this understanding?

Ezekiel prophesying says, “Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness (sins) and from all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within you”……. (Ezek.36:25-27)

Was the Prophet Ezekiel speaking spiritually here? Was he speaking about a spiritual birth? Was he speaking about an internal washing? It looks like it to me.

The Prophet Jeremiah also prophesied about the “heart”. He talked about giving us “one heart” in Jer.32:39. He spoke about the “cleansing” of the heart in 33:8.

So, to understand “water” and “blood” and how they work for the common purpose of regeneration, we need to remember that “water” is for the “internal washing” of the heart. The “blood” is for the “remission of sins”, or the doing away thereof. Water and blood cannot be separated. They are two agents, so to speak, that are joined together. So when one says, “born of water”, he is including the fact that it takes “blood” to complete the process of regeneration.

Next up…. There is something that has been left out in the teaching of being “born again”. It has to do with being “born of water”. It is the spiritual significance of the man, “John the Baptist”. He taught something that is of utmost importance if one is going to be “born again?” No, it’s not only “water baptism” as we might think. That’s the literal, and most popular teaching of the man. Water baptism does complete the process, but it’s certainly not “all conclusive”.